Alex Goligoski and Matt Niskanen grew up about 40 miles apart in northern Minnesota, so there’s a little bit of irony in the fact the two defensemen were traded for each other.

“I probably played against him since I was 12 or 13,” Niskanen said. “Bantams, high school, college. We saw a lot of each other.”

And while Saturday’s meeting between Pittsburgh and Dallas might be a good time to study the 2011 trade that sent Niskanen and James Neal to the Penguins and brought Goligoski to the Stars, any discussion has to begin with the fact Pittsburgh is the clear winner in the deal. Getting Neal, who has 78 goals in 150 games since the trade, tilts everything the way of the Penguins.

But analyzing the progress of Niskanen and Goligoski since being moved can provide some insight into the mental battle that defensemen have to face.

Niskanen was both frustrated and frustrating in 277 games with the Stars. After starting out as a rookie of the year candidate playing beside Sergei Zubov in 2007-08, Niskanen wilted when Zubov was injured and eventually left. Forced to play with heavy expectations, he simply couldn’t find calm.

“I had to get out of there,” Niskanen said Friday. “I needed a change and a fresh start, and they needed something other than me.”

Niskanen got that fresh start in Pittsburgh, where he was given a chance to breathe. His minutes remained the same, but the pressure level seemed to decrease greatly.

“I give a lot of credit to the coaches, because they were patient with me and basically just gave me an opportunity to improve,” Niskanen said. “I had to reset, and I think that helped me.”

It certainly paid off this season when Niskanen was forced into a leadership role while several players were injured. The 27-year-old defenseman still is averaging just 20:20 in playing time, so the coaches were careful in stretching him out, but he has 30 points (seven goals, 23 assists — 12th among NHL defensemen). He has played in all 51 of Pittsburgh’s games, and he leads the NHL in plus-minus at plus-29.

He has points in 10 of his last 11 games — a total of 13 points.

“I think I’ve come a long way in these three years, because I really wanted the responsibility, it sounded fun to me,” he said of his reaction to the injuries. “So it was just a bunch of kids and me, and we worked it out together.”

Now, Niskanen’s partner is 19-year-old Olli Maatta, a rookie who will play with Finland’s Olympic team.

Niskanen signed a two-year deal worth $4.6 million with Pittsburgh after the 2011-12 season. That deal is up after this season, and he’s likely to be in demand if he reaches free agency.

The Penguins are healthy and near full strength, and Niskanen’s role has been dialed back, but the message is clear.

On the other side of the ice, Goligoski also is battling to feel comfortable in his skin. He was scaled up in coming to the Stars and has led the team in time on ice in each of his four seasons in Dallas, currently sitting at 23:56. Goligoski has 21 points (two goals, 19 assists) and is minus-4 in 50 games.

Goligoski said he doesn’t think about the trade and simply tries to manage the daily stress by focusing on making the right plays.

“It’s just pretty much trying to win one game at a time,” he said.

Stars coach Lindy Ruff, who played both forward and defense in his NHL career, said trying to manage the mental pressure is always a balancing act.

“With every defenseman, they’re going to have tough nights, so how much weight do you put into that tough night or into the couple of plays you would like them to clean up?” Ruff said. “We’re trying to correct where you have your stick or where you have your feet, and stressing staying in the good ice. It’s fundamentals.”

And that’s what can help a defenseman improve. Former Stars defenseman Darryl Sydor now is an assistant coach with the Wild. He said he learned a great deal about confidence when he was traded from the Kings early in his career.

“Sometimes you have to take three, four, five steps back and get to your fundamentals, and then start building up again,” Sydor said. “I was always the type of player who wanted to do more than I should. And when I came here, I think I found my game in knowing that if you make the simple plays, good things will happen.”

It’s a lesson that seems easy to embrace when the Stars and Penguins play.

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